Humphreys County School District Adopts CHART!
The Humphreys County School District became the 9th school district to adopt the CHART Abstinence-Plus policy. The board adopted an abstinence-plus policy in the fall, using the sample policy provided for districts by MDE’s Office of Healthy Schools. Last night (2/14), the board voted to rescind that policy, and replace it with the CHART policy.
The major difference between these two policies is that the CHART policy provides greater detail about the implementation of abstinence-plus sex ed. Districts must adopt the CHART policy in order to participate in this federally-funded initiative.
Humphreys County is one of our fifteen priority 1 counties, and one of six counties that meets all five of the sexual health indicators used to determine priority status. By adopting CHART, the district will now be able to implement evidenced-based sex ed curricula at no cost to the district.
More districts are expected to adopt the policy soon. We’ll keep you informed.
Hinds County School District Adopts CHART!
The Hinds County School District has become the 8th school district to adopt the CHART Abstinence-Plus policy. The districts new policy was adopted on January 12th. The county is currently identified as Priority 2, due to it’s significantly high sexually-transmitted infection rates. This is the first district in the Metro Jackson area to adopt the policy. The Jackson Public School district is currently weighing their options re: their sex education options.
More districts are expected to adopt the policy in the coming weeks. Check here for new updates between now and the July 1st deadline.
Leland School District Replaces Abstinence-Only Policy with CHART!
The Leland School District (Washington, P1) moved quickly to revise their sex education policy. The district already had an abstinence-only policy, and it is unclear how long that policy was in place. But last night the school board voted unanimously to rescind the abstinence-only policy, then voted unanimously to adopt the CHART Abstinence-Plus policy. The quick action of the board can be attributed to the strong support given by Superintendent Dr. Janice Monroe.
Leland is the 7th district to adopt the CHART policy, and the 2nd Washington County district to do so in the past week. The Priority 1 county has significantly high teen birth and Chlamydia infection rates, and has a gonorrhea infection rate that is three times higher than the state infection rate (the highest rate in the nation).
We expect Hollandale and Greenville to adopt CHART shortly after the new year, thereby giving every public school student access to evidence-based sex education. If you’re interested in taking part in CHART advocacy in this or any other Mississippi county, please e-mail Deputy Director Sanford Johnson at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
Western Line School District Adopts CHART!
On Thursday (12/8), the Western Line School Board officially adopted the CHART Abstinence-Plus policy. The district is the 6th in the state to adopt the policy, and the first to adopt in Washington County (P1). Washington County is one of 5 counties that hit each of our five sexual health indicators. The county also has a gonorrhea infection rate that is THREE TIMES higher than the state infection rate.
The three other school districts in Washington County may also adopt CHART in the coming weeks. The policy will be presented to school boards in Hollandale and Leland tonight (12/12), and Greenville is expected to follow very soon. Districts are required to adopt either an abstinence-only or abstinence-plus policy by June 30, 2012.
Stay tuned for more updates.
Coahoma County School District Adopts CHART
Add the Coahoma County School District to the list of districts that have adopted the CHART policy! I actually received word of the districts decision this week, during a meeting where I was planning on convincing Supt. Pauline Rhodes to send the policy to the Board. I was scheduled to present the policy to the district's board in June, but I had to cancel the presentation (my daughter was born the week before). Unbeknownst to me, the Board did a first reading of the policy anyway, and voted to approve it July 5th.
Since Coahoma County is one of our highest priorities for the CHART policy, this was a very pleasant surprise! With the county school district now on board, the Clarksdale Municipal School District will take up the policy this month. I'll keep you updated on their progress.
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